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Aging yet still
spry: 'Grey's Anatomy'

ABC hospital drama excels at the art of integrating new characters

By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Feb 2, 2012

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While "Desperate Housewives" is in its final season and "House" seems likely to be as well, another one of the storied class of 2004, the group of smash shows that debuted eight seasons ago, seems likely to stick around at least another couple years.

"Grey's Anatomy," which airs tonight at 9 p.m., remains ABC's top-rated drama and network's No. 2 show overall in its eighth season.

Though its ratings have been on the decline for years, it's still strong enough to draw significant DVR playback each week and remain the No. 1 show in its timeslot despite competition from CBS's "Person of Interest" and NBC's "The Office," another class of 2004 show.

This season "Grey's" is averaging a 3.8 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen, tied for 11th overall on broadcast this season. That rating rises to a 5.4 when seven-day DVR playback is included, a bump of 42 percent.

The reason "Grey's" seems to have held up better than some of the other older shows, "Housewives," for instance, is that the show has successfully integrated fresh new characters with the old ones as the program aged.

When original cast members Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight moved on, new ones like Kevin McKidd and Jessica Capshaw joined. The transitions were relatively seamless because of the transitory nature of hospitals like the one where "Grey's" is set.

In a neighborhood like on "Housewives," on the other hand, the transitions seem more forced because the relationships are personal, not work-related.

That makes it easy to imagine that "Grey's" will be around for at least another two seasons, because its ratings and its cast are strong enough to weather more changes.

In tonight's episodes, the usually dreary Meredith imagines a world in which she's a happy-go-lucky person.

A look at this week's top TV draws
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	Fox	"American Idol" (R)	Still more early auditions.
8 p.m.	TNT	"NBA Basketball" (S)	Eastern Conference battle between the Bulls and the Knicks.
9 p.m.	NBC	"The Office" (C)	Jim returns to the office after a stint on jury duty.
9 p.m.	HBO	"The Union" (N)	Looking at the relationship between Elton John and Leon Russell.
9 p.m.	VH1	"Pepsi Super Bowl Fan Jam" (A)	Gym Class Heroes and All-American Rejects are among the performers.
10 p.m.	MTV	"Jersey Shore" (R)	Mike tries to be nice but only becomes more annoying.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	NBC	"Who Do You Think You Are?" (R)	Season premiere. Martin Sheen examines his family history.
8 p.m.	ESPN	"NBA Basketball" (S)	The Knicks face off against the Celtics in Boston.
9 p.m.	CBS	"CSI: NY" (D)	A role-playing game ends with the death of one of the players.
9 p.m.	DIY	"Man Caves" (R)	An ex-Marine wants a room where he can escape from the women in his family.
9 p.m.	Showtime	"Paul Mooney: The Godfather of Comedy" (C)	The comedian delivers a stand-up performance in Atlanta.
10:30 p.m.	ESPN	"NBA Basketball" (S)	The Lakers visit Denver to take on the Nuggets.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4
Time	Network	Program	Description
2 p.m.	ESPN	"College Basketball" (S)	Huge Big Ten matchup between Ohio State and Wisconsin.
8 p.m.	Fox	"Cops" (R)	Cops in Vegas hunt a suspect who runs from a traffic stop.
8 p.m.	Lifetime	"Secrets of Eden" (M)	John Stamos plays a minister who questions his faith after a church member is murdered.
9 p.m.	ESPN	"College Basketball" (S)	Big 12 rivals Kansas and Missouri face off.
9 p.m.	NBC	'NFL Honors" (A, S)	Alec Baldwin hosts the event live from Indianapolis.
10 p.m.	HBO	"Boxing" (S)	Middleweight title fight between undefeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Marco Antonio Rubio.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5
Time	Network	Program	Description
10:30 a.m.	Fox	"Soccer" (S)	Live coverage of an English Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester united.
1 p.m.	NBC	"Super Bowl Pregame" (S)	Yes, the pregame show is longer than the game.
1 p.m.	CBS	"College Basketball" (S)	Big Ten rivalry game between Michigan and Michigan State.
3 p.m.	Animal Planet	"Puppy Bowl VIII" (A)	Once again featuring the kitten halftime show.
6 p.m.	NBC	"NFL Football" (S)	After all the talk, it's Giants versus Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.
10 p.m.	NBC	"The Voice" (R)	Season premiere. Christina Milian joins the hit show this season as social media reporter.
A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.